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Report: Apple-Beats ‘still happening,’ acquisition being made for talent

Apple’s acquisition of Beats Electronics “is happening” but almost fell apart “multiple times,” TechCrunch reports. A source is 70 percent certain the deal will go through, which still casts doubt on an acquisition that many thought was all but done. The source also noted that Apple is buying Beats for its talent, not its technology — namely its founders, Jimmy Iovine and Dr. Dre. “They want Jimmy and they want Dre,” the source said. “He’s got fashion and culture completely locked up.” Apple has become interested in hiring “culturally aware and highly skilled managers” — Angela Ahrendts, Paul Deneve, Ari Partinen, and Ben Shaffer are all given as examples.

The report theorizes Iovine will negotiate record deals for Apple, as many have expected. Another source notes — unsurprisingly — that Apple will use the Beats streaming music service to its advantage in conjunction with iTunes.